HANDY BULB

Handy Bulb, retail $5.00 (www.biglots.com*)
Manufactured by (Unknown)
Last updated 07-11-09




This is a battery-powered lamp that you can stick on the wall in any dark location; this allows you to have light in these otherwise dark places.

It looks a lot like a standard spotlight bulb & socket, complete with pull switch, but it is completely self-contained - no messy and expensive wiring to fuss with.

* Not found on the Big Lots website; so this URL simply leads to their front door.


SIZE



To use the Handy Bulb, feed it first (see directly below), and THEN you can light up that dark closet.

To turn the light on, just gently pull the string on it until it clicks.
To turn the light off, simply repeat the same process.

To place the unit where you want, look on the back of the bracket for a large square of double-stick tape. Peel the backing off, and firmly press the bracket where you want it. Be certain the open end of the bracket faces up.
That's all there is to it.

The bulb unit just slips in and out of this bracket using a "keyhole" fitting; no need for tools of any type here.

The bulb portion can be swung on its Y-axis (vertiucally) over an approximately 120° range. Although this product is not a spotlight; the ability to swing the bulb out can indeed be helpful.



To change the batteries in this product, remove it from the bracket first if necessary. On the bottom of the unit, look for a battery door. Pull down on the clip and swing the door off. Gently place it on the floor, and kick it down the stairs so the termites will think it's something yummy to eat, drag it to their nest, and find it unpalatable so they just pee on it (yes, I had a pet rat that pissed on some nuts I brought home to her from the food bank!!!)...O WAIT!!! YOU'LL NEED THAT!!! So just set it aside instead.

If necessary, remove and dispose of or recycle the four used AA cells from the battery compartment.

Load four new AA cells into the compartment, orienting them so the flat-end (-) negative faces a spring for it in each compartment.

Place the battery door back on, and slip the Handy Bulb back in its bracket.
Aren't you glad you didn't kick that battery door into the basement with all those termites with full bladders now?


Since this is an incandescent product, sooner or later you'll need to change the bulb.

Unscrew and remove the large "bulb" (it turns a bit & stops; then lifts straight off), place it on the floor near a door, open the door, and kick it into the garden so the praying mantids will think it's something yummy for their insect tummies and subsequently strike at it. Kick it multiple times if necessary...O WAIT!!! YOU'LL NEED THAT!!! So just set it aside instead.


Here is what a praying mantis looks like.
I found this guy on the morning of 09-08-06 clinging to the basket of my scooter.

Unscrew and remove the burned out bulb, and get rid of it. Light bulbs are not yet recyclable, which is why I did not offer that option here.

Screw in a new bulb (screw base; type unknown) and screw the large outer "bulb" on.

Aren't you glad you didn't kick that "bulb" into the garden with all those hungry, hungry praying mantids now?

Measures 534mA on my DMM's 4A scale.



Since this bulb was meant to be stuck up somewhere and not abused, I won't whap it against a steel rod or the concrete floor of a patio, try to drown it in a toilet bowl, stomp on it, run over it, or inflict other punishments upon it that might be inflicted upon regular flashlights. So this section will be rather short.

And since the tests I perform might cause breakage, I will not perform them on the Handy Bulb.

The Handy Bulb can also be hand-carried (away from its bracket) so you can use it to light your way down dark stairs or across a room with no light bulbs or one or more burned out or busted light blubs in it.

This evaluation look an awful lot like the one I wrote for the Magic Blub?
Thought you'd say so.
That's because they're similar in appearance and functionality, so I could use its web page as a template for this one.



Photograph of Handy Bulb, illuminated.
Measures 5.57cd on a Meterman LM631 light meter (now Amprobe LM631A) light meter.
Remember, this is a 360° light source; the intensity will read very low.



Photograph of the lit bulb itself, showing that it is more diffused than either the StickUp Bulb or the Magic Bulb.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the Handy Bulb.
USB2000 Spectrometer graciously donated by P.L.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the Handy Bulb; different spectrometer used to dig a bit farther into the NIR.



TEST NOTES:
Test unit was purchased at a Big Lots store in Federal Way WA. USA on 07-09-09.

It is not stated where this product was manufactured. A product's country of origin really does matter to some people, which is why I wanted to publish it on this web page.


UPDATE: 00-00-00



PROS:
Appears to be at least *REASONABLY* durable
Uses batteries that are commonly available & relatively inexpen$ive
Outer "bulb" tilts in the Y-axis (vertically)


CONS:
Not waterproof or submersible - but it really wasn't designed to be
Uses a special screw-in bulb that may be difficult to locate when needed


    MANUFACTURER: Unknown
    PRODUCT TYPE: Stick-up light source
    LAMP TYPE: Incandescent; 4.8 volts 800mA screw-base
    No. OF LAMPS: 1
    BEAM TYPE: N/A
    SWITCH TYPE: Pull-chain on/off
    BEZEL: Diffused plastic bulb protects lamp
    BATTERY: 4xAA cells
    CURRENT CONSUMPTION: 534mA
    WATER RESISTANT: Light splatter-resistance only
    SUBMERSIBLE: No way Hozay!!!
    ACCESSORIES: Bracket, 2 screws, 2 anchors, 1 spare "lite" "bub"
    WARRANTY: Unknown/not stated

    PRODUCT RATING:

    Star Rating





Handy Bulb *






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